“A much greater source of anxiety to Us is the style of action of those who maintain that liturgical worship should shed its sacred character, who foolishly say we should substitute for sacred items & furnishings ordinary common things in daily use.” —Pope Saint Paul VI (14 Oct 1968)
Father Francisco Guerrero (d. 1599) studied music with Father Cristóbal de Morales circa 1545. He taught himself the organ. On 3 April 1542 he was engaged as a contralto by Seville Cathedral at an annual salary of 12,000 maravedís. He remained there until 1546, when, at the age of only 17, he was invited—on the […]
Father Adrian Fortescue (d. 1923) called this “perhaps the greatest of all hymns.”
During Advent, choirmasters must plan Christmas. During Lent, choirmasters must plan Easter. And so on.
Choosing music for the Sacred Music Symposium requires careful consideration. We make sure (always) to have great variety. Because the schedule is so full, there’s never sufficient time to discuss the music fully—indeed, we could easily do a month-long seminar on each piece! For example, last year Dr. Calabrese conducted a setting of the Magnificat […]
There’s an old saying: “Show me your friends, and I will tell you who you are.”
I composed this organ accompaniment yesterday, looking ahead towards Eastertide.
Including Fulton J. Sheen, Charles de Foucauld, and a Homily by Father Valentine Young, OFM
CCW contributors—Jeff, Veronica, Andrea, and Cynthia—each recorded a line for this recording.
I would like to share a message from a highly respected scholar. (His articles appear in distinguished journals such as Études grégoriennes and Oxford’s Early Music.) He wrote as follows: The Brébeuf Hymnal is very tastefully done. Your team has exquisite literary and musical taste. I see from my copy of the hymnal that you […]
The world’s experts have been releasing contradictory statements Re: Covid-19. I am neither a doctor nor a scientist, so I won’t comment; but I have something to say about the spine-tingling predictions made by certain politicians. When I was growing up, they told us “within ten years” we would starve due to overpopulation. The next […]
The 2020 Sacred Music Symposium “Official Statement” on Coronavirus has been posted; I encourage everyone to read it. I would like to share some advice: (1) avoid excessive amounts of “cable news” reporting on the pandemic, similar to how we diligently avoid immoral magazines and pornography; (2) let us pray for God’s mercy, and let […]
Father Valentine Young, OFM, always spoke about people incapable of saying “I don’t know.” Such people have an answer for everything—as if saying “I don’t know” would cause them physical pain. That’s how I acted growing up, but I stopped when I reached maturity. Another thing I did as a kid was insist that I […]
Have you noticed how many people these days don’t know what an analogy is? If I say to John Doe, “that’s the pot calling the kettle black,” frequently John Doe will go around telling everybody I called him an ugly pot. It’s quite disturbing. I’ve also noticed that many Americans believe the definition of “possible” […]
Including the “official statement” regarding the Coronavirus.
I’m not even sure what to say about this.
The election of Pope Leo XIV has been exciting, and we’re filled with hope for our apostolate’s future!
But we’re under pressure to transfer our website to a “subscription model.”
We don’t want to do that. We believe our website should remain free to all.
Our president has written the following letter:
President’s Message (dated 30 May 2025)
